Matrix seating mechanism for teletypesetter operated composing and line casting machines



Dec. 23, 1952 5 SLOAN MATRIX SEATING MECHANISM FOR TELETYPESETTER OPERATED COMPOSING AND LINE CASTING MACHINES 2 SHEETS- HEET 1 Filed Jan. 28, 1952 Fig.1

Frederick S. Sloan INVENTOR.

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il/Q9151 Patented Dec. 23, 1952 MATRIX SEATING MECHANISM FOR TELE- TYPESETTER OPERATED COMPOSING AND LINE CASTING MACHINES Frederick S. Sloan, Clinton, Okla.

Application January 28, 1952, Serial No. 263,598

3 Claims.

This invention relates to teletypesetter operated composing machines and more specifically to teletypesetter operated Linotype, Intertype and other composing and line casting machines and it has for its main object to improve and extend the automatic action of the teletypesetter operating unit by a simple means without addition to or reconstruction of the code signal and code bar operated mechanism.

More specifically stated the object of the invention consists in firmly holding the line of matrices and space bands when a line has been fully assembled, in the interval between the termination of the line assembling operation and the transposition of the line which carries the assembled line of matrices and space bands into a jaw, moving it into a position in front of the mold.

Still more specifically stated the object of the invention consists in providing means for releasing automatically the assembler slide of the assembling elevator which is a device catching and holding the assembled matrices and space bands until the line is fully assembled, which assembler slide is freely movable under elastic tension so as to firmly hold under elastic pressure the line of matrices and space hands, when assembled, but which slide is held by frictional means during the assembling process permitting its displacement through the addition of new matrices but preventing a movement of the slide under spring tension against the matrices, said automatic release being produced at the end of the assembling operation immediately before the elevating of the assembled line, by means of a simple connection between the teletypesetter operating unit and the line casting machine, transmitting a control movement effecting said release which can be exactly timed.

These and other objects of the invention will be more fully understood from the following specification describing the invention in detail with refcren-ce to the accompanying drawings.

One embodiment of the invention is shown by way of example in the drawings but it isto be understood that the embodiment shown has been selected in order to explain the principle of the invention and the best mode of applying said principle. The following specification and the drawings do not intend to give a survey of the possible modifications of the principle of the in- 2 vention and a departure from the example which has been illustrated and which will be described in detail specifically is therefore not necessarily a departure from the principle of the invention.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 illustrates in outline a Linotype machine when operated by a teletypesetter operating unit and it shows the connection between the teletypesetter operating unit and the machine according to the invention in perspective.

Figure 2 is a perspective View of the elevator shaft of the teletypesetter operating unit and of its adjoining parts illustrating the additional members used according to the invention.

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the connection between the teletypesetter operating unit and the composing machine made according to the invention.

Figure 4 is an elevational sectional view through the lower end of the flexible shaft connection which is provided according to the invention.

Figure 5 is an elevational sectional view of the upper end of the flexible shaft connection.

In the following specification it is assumed that the general construction and operation of a Linotype machine which is selected as an example and the construction and operation of a teletypesetter operating unit for operating said Linotype machine by means of code signals punched into a tape is well known to the reader of the specification, as it is part of the known art with which the expert in this field is familiar. The construction and operation of the machine and operating unit is therefore not described but is only referred to briefly insofar as it is necessary to convey a full understanding of the cooperation of the invention with the said machine and unit.

As well known in a Linotype machine lines are cast from matrices which are assembled, together with expansible space bands, in a justified line after having been selected by means of a keyboard and when released from the magazines by the operation of the keyboard they are forced into anassembling elevator (sometimes called stick) which holds the assembled matrices until a line is full and thereafter elevates them into a position from which the assembled matrices and space bands may be carried into a jaw moving them into a position in front of a mold for the casting of the line. In order to force the matrices, delivered by a conveyor in an upright position, into the assembling elevator, a mechanism including a so-called star wheel is used; the assembling elevator is provided with a freely movable assembler slide which is under the tension of a coil spring.

During the formation of the line the matrices are thus resiliently held in an upright position in the assembling elevator by the pressure of a suitable slide member provided on the spring tensioned slide and applied against the matrices at one end, while the star wheel applying pressure to the matrix which is being fed to the assembling elevator holds the matrices during the line formation at the other end. The assembler slide is provided with a brake or friction mechanism retaining it in its place. Such a brake is necessary in order to prevent the slide from moving back after the star wheel has squeezed the last arrived matrix, delivered by the conveyor, into the assembling elevator when now the hollow part of the star wheel passes this matrix. This frictional or brake action is, of course, not sufficiently strong to effectively oppose or retard the outward movement of the slide, although it prevents the movement of the slide towards the star wheel.

When the line is full the operator by means of a hand lever, or the operating unit by certain mechanical means, causes the assembling elevator to be lifted and during the last part of the upward movement of the assembling elevator this brake is released and the slide returns to its starting place under the influence of the spring.

When all the matrices have been delivered into the assembling elevator it sometimes happens that the last matrix delivered is not properly seated within the pawls of the assembling elevator. As the elevator rises the matrix which is not properly seated will meet some obstruction which easily may cause damage to its combination (the set of teeth at the top of the matrix which guides the matrix back to its magazine), and possibly make the matrix unfit for further use.

If the matrix meets an obstruction and the assembling elevator cannot be lifted completely, the brake is not released and the safety device of the Linotype machine is operated thus making it necessary for the operator to remedy the situation manually and to put the machine back in operation.

Sometimes the above mentioned failure causes a complete line of assembled lines and space bands to fall makin it necessary for the operator to pick up the matrices to straighten them and to return them to the machine. Thus it will be seen that an incorrect seating of the matrix, although not frequent, causes a considerable waste of time and in many instances necessitates replacement or repair of matrices.

Therefore when the Linotype machine is hand operated it is sometimes necessary to bring the slide back to its starting position and moreover after the line has been assembled it is almost regularly necessary or of advantage to bring the last matrix of the line back to the star wheel which acts as a holding stop for the line in this phase to seat it correctly and for this purpose a release member for the brake of the slide is provided. This member usually has an extension and the release extension finger is manually operated by the operator in hand operated machines.

When operating the Linotype machine with a teletypesetter operatin unit the key levers are operated by the teletypesetter using either a five or a six unit codeusually the latter-which permits sixty-four combinations. With these sixty four code combinations all the letters and figures, the character of the types (roman or italics for instance) the shifting from lower to upper case and all other further operations must be initiated, but, as the number of levers to be manipulated by hand is rather large, all sixty-four combinations are practically necessary to cover the manipulation and further operations, especially those which are more rarely performed or which are only performed in certain situations must be performed by the operator.

An operation of this type is the above mentioned return of the slide to its starting position. According to the invention, however, an automatic link for this operation is added to the teletypesetter operated Linotype machine which performs this operation automatically and which starts the slide back to its starting position during a certain phase of the operation as this operation, although it may not be always neces sary, may safely be performed regularly when the teletypesetter operating unit has proceeded to a certain operational phase, while this operation is most useful or is necessary in some cases. When the star wheel holds the last matrix of the line which has been fed into the assembling elevator no movement will occur upon release of the brake, but if for some reason the matrix at the end of the line should not be pressed against the spokes or teeth of the star wheel the release of the slide will produce a movement towards and a pressing of the line against the star wheel before the lift ing of the assembling elevator. The release of the slide, when performed regularly and automat ically, while perhaps unnecessary in some cases, will not change the situation in these cases but will be of advantage in all those cases in which the line of matrices and space bands are not firmly held between a member of the slide and the star wheel.

The release mechanism is generally illustrated in Figures 1 and 3 of the drawings which shows the connection between the teletypesetter operating unit and the Linotype machine. The Linotype machine is generally indicated at 5, but is only shown in a general outline to provide an idea of the location of the basic parts. The invention does in no way change the customary construction of the machine. As also well known the teletypesetter unit, indicated at 6 is mounted near the keyboard, carrying black, blue and white keys as usual, which are however not manually operated if a teletypesetter operating unit is added. The said teletypesetter operating unit also operates various other control levers which are not on the keyboard, such for instance as the assembling elevator lifting lever etc.

The assembling elevator slide is generally indicated at 8. It is provided with an assembler slide release extension finger In which is usually operated manually by the operator but which, according to the invention, is now operated by the mechanism described below.

The slide comprises a movable member 9 which is attached to a spring [2 coiled on a spring drum 22 which pulls the slide as far as possible towards the right in Figure 1, pressing the matrices on the slide (not shown) towards the right in the figure and. on the machin until the last matrix is firmly applied against the star wheel. The movable member 9 is held by two small fiber brake blocks II which do not prevent a movement of aeaavce the slide outwardly when new matrices are added to the line, but. which prevent a. returnv movement. These. two small fiber brake. blocks H are released by the. release extension finger it) when the latter is pressed downwardly.

The teletypesetter operating unit which essentially also remains unchanged, is provided with a well known selector mechanism which is operated by means of the code signs which are transmitted to the mechanism by means of a tape into which holes have been punched in a certain manner. This mechanism, as well known, comprises a set of notched code bars I and a shift bar Iii (by means of which the upper or lower case matrices are selected after the type has been selected by the other code bars) and said code bars cooperate with upper and lower push bars. To operate the elevator of the Linotype machine a special code sign, called the elevator combination, appears in the tape of the teletypesetter operating unit at the end of each line which special combination code sign results in the operation of a special elevator push bar [7.

By means of various bellcrank levers and links the elevator push bar H operates the clutch 2| by means of which the elevator shaft 26 is coupled with a driven pulley shaft so that it rotates. The elevator shaft rotates only when the end of a full line has been reached and when the selector shaft, by means of which the selection of the matrices takes place, is held stationary. The elevator shaft, during the period during which the selector shaft is held stationary is permitted to rotate for a full revolution when the above mentioned code sign combination controls the operation. The rotation of the elevator shaft is controlled by means of a cam which is mounted on the said shaft and which operates a throw out lever near the end of the revolution of the shaft which is engaged and holds the clutch in its disengaged position.

On this elevator shaft 28 according to the invention a further cam 24 (Figures 2 and 3) is mounted. This cam is provided with a substantially triangular radially projecting operating arm or cam sector and with a cam portion of circular shape. Against the cam surface a plunger 25 is pressed which is movable within a guide sleeve 25 and which forms the end of a flexible shaft or Bowden wire cable 39. The plunger 25 when running along the cam surface during the revolution of the elevator shaft therefore does not move as long as the circular portion of the cam surface passes under the plunger,

but is pushed into the sleeve 26 during the passage of the radially projecting operating cam sector. The upper end of the guide sleeve 26 carries a ferrule 21 which may be attached to a bracket 28 which is carried by the keyboard of the Linotype machine. The bracket, as indicated, may be adjustable by means of a screw 3| and may be bent or curved (as at 29) so as to fit the guide sleeve accurately into a slot above the cam 2 on the elevator shaft 2i).

As shown in Figure 4 a spring 33 is interposed between the end of the casing 32 of the flexible shaft or Bowden cable held within the ferrule 27 which urges the plunger 25 forming the tip of the flexible shaft outwardly towards the cam surface.

At its other end the flexible shaft til carries push finger or pin 4i which is applied against the assembly slide release extension finger It. The spring 33 holds the push finger or pin 40 in its retracted position. The flexible shaft or Bowden cable 30 may un, ea its. upper e through, a. guiding sleeve 35 and the push finger or pin may be provided with a flange 36 or with a washer which limits the distance through which the spring 33 can pull th shaft 30 back.

The position and the dimensions of the cam and of the plunger control the length of the displacement of the flexible shaft. The position of the camv 24 of the elevator shaft 20 on the, other hand, determines. th exact or precise moment of action. The cam acts upon the shaft in such a manner that the extension finger i0 is tripped just prior to the elevation of a line of matrices.

As has already been explained the movement of the extension finger l0 releases the brake blocks holding the slide 9 and the slide therefore brings the matrices back so that they press against the star wheel in order that they may be firmly seated within the pawls or jaws of the assembling elevator.

The invention thus provides a simple means for producing an additional automatic movement seating the matrices without necessity of using an additional code sign or an additional equipment of the Linotype machine or teletypesetter operating unit with the sole exception of the cam 24 to be mounted on the elevator shaft, and it thus reduces the attention which has to be paid to the operation by the attendant and therefore also the source of defects in a very simple manner without in any way adding to the complexity of the structure.

It will be clear that the examples given in order to illustrate the invention may be changed in many unessential details without in any way departing from the essence of the invention as defined in the annexed claims.

Having described the invention, what is claimed as new is:

1. A matrix seating mechanism for composing and line casting machines, automatically operated by a code signal combination controlled operating unit, said line casting machine including an assembling elevator for holding a line of matrices and space band-s during their assembly, provided with an assembly slide freely movable under spring tension and held by releasable friction means released by an assembler slide release member, and said operating unit including an elevator shaft, rotating upon termination of the selection of matrices for a line upon delivery of a special code signal combination at the end of a line, comprising a movement transmission means having one end arranged near the elevator shaft of the operating unit and the other end arranged near the assembly slide release member, means for operating said movement transmission means, mounted on said elevator shaft of the operating unit, and operative at a predetermined time during the revolution of said elevator shaft, and means on said movement transmission means fcr engaging and operating said assembler slide release member.

2. A matrix seating mechanism for composing and line casting machines automatically operated by a code signal combination controlled operating unit, said line casting machine including an assembling elevator for holding a line of matrices and space bands during their assembly, provided with an assembly slide freely movable under spring tension and held by releasable friction means released by an assembler slide release member, and said operating unit including an elevator shaft, rotating upon termination of the selection of matrices for a line upon delivery of a special code signal combination at the end of a line, comprising a flexible shaft having one end arranged near the elevator shaft and the other end arranged near the assembly slide re lease member, said last named end carrying an operating head for operating the said assembly slide release member when moved towards it, a cam. member on said elevator shaft of the operating unit, and a cam following member in operative relation to said cam, on the end of the flexible shaft located near the elevator shaft, the cam being so shaped and mounted that the assembly slide release member will be operated by means of transmission of movement through the flexible shaft at a predeterminedphase of the operation of the composing machine.

3. A matrix seating mechanism as claimed in claim 2, wherein the flexible shaft is provided with a movable plunger at the end near the elevator shaft, a guide sleeve for said plunger and a spring pressing on said plunger for returning the shaft and keeping it in contact with the cam.

FREDERICK S. SLOAN.

No references cited. 

